Hot Stuff becomes first to stop Rushton by Oliver Fennell Sep 22nd 2007

It was tempting fate when the event programme billed Jason Rushton as “the fighter no-one seems able to knock down”. Sure enough, his bio will now have to be rewritten after Gary Woolcombe floored him for the count in round seven of a light-middleweight eight-rounder. Woolcombe, in his second contest since a crushing loss to Andrew Facey in January, was sharp and purposeful from the opening bell. Just seconds in to the contest, he established a whipping jab which would be the fight's primary factor, preventing Rushton from ever getting any momentum going. The Doncaster visitor, who brought a cosmetically-impressive 17-3 record to the bout, wore a grimace from early on. He looked particularly sickened in round two, when Woolcombe lashed him with a long right hand and then unloaded a fusillade of fast combos as Rushton sought refuge on the ropes. Rushton's reputation for durability had been tested early, and lesser men would surely have folded under Woolcombe's second-round barrage. But while we came through this mini-storm, he would never be a factor in the fight after it, offering dogged resistance and little else. From then on, it became a breaking-down job for Welling man Woolcombe, who used his jab to create openings for more straight-arm combinations. Rushton did land an eye-catching right in the fifth, but coming from a man with just three stoppages to his name, it had no effect. Round six saw Rushton begin to bend and wilt from more slashing blows, and the end came in the next session. A marked-up Rushton was sent crashing into his own corner by a left hook, and the completion of the 10-count coincided with an intervention from the Doncaster corner. It was announced as a knockout at 0:48 of the session. It was an impressive performance from Woolcombe, who improves to 24-1 (9). His opponent was limited, but he displayed intelligent boxing, composure, and further evidence of his improving power, which has now carried him to eight inside-schedule victories in his last 11 successes. While losing to Facey was no disgrace, on this form it's hard to fathom how it went so very wrong for Woolcombe eight months ago. Shock result of the night was Craig Watson's super-quick demolition of Robert Lloyd-Taylor in a rematch of their April eight-rounder, won on points by Watson. Lloyd-Taylor was on the deck twice that night and boxed without conviction throughout. He could obviously have performed better and wanted to prove himself this time around, but Watson was having none of it. The Mancunian, best known for flooring Amir Khan as an amateur, proved who the better man was in next-to no time, crashing a southpaw left cross into Lloyd-Taylor's temple for a one-punch knockout at just 37 seconds of the first round. The blow span Lloyd-Taylor around before pitching him to the canvas. He rose as if walking on stilts before falling again and almost pulling the referee down with him. Watson, 10-1 (3) now has his sights set on Ali Nuumbembe's Commonwealth welterweight title. Lloyd-Taylor, 13-6 (4), who has had considerable faith shown in him despite the setbacks (he was in the blue corner again although facing a man who had beaten him so recently), might have nowhere to go. Jamie McDonnell warmed up for his shot at the inaugural British super-flyweight championship by outscoring capable Ukrainian visitor Nikita Lukin over eight. The early rounds were uncomfortable for the reed-thin McDonnell, as a Lukin who clearly came to win exerted effective pressure. For me, he won the first two sessions and shared the fourth as McDonnell struggle to find his range, hit the target and keep his man away. From the fifth round on, though, McDonnell pulled away from the tiring trialhorse. Lukin became more flat-footed as he tired, and thus easier to hit. McDonnell looked for the finish in the seventh, but when there was still no give, he settled down to collect a points decision and the eighth victory of an unbeaten career (one draw). The official score of 80-73 was less generous to Lukin than my card of 78-75. It was a valuable learning experience for McDonnell ahead of his title showdown with Stoke's Chris Edwards on November 30. Now there's a man who won't fade after four rounds. Ticket-selling Harrow lightweight Akaash Bhatia – Britain's only Sikh professional boxer – improved to 8-0 (2) with a sharp six-round workout against French journeyman Frederic Gosset. The 60-54 score was a formality. But another unbeaten run was snapped as Scott Woolford of Kent was stood on his head by tricky London-based Dutchman Yassine El Maachi, 4-2 (2). Woolford, 4-1 (0) could never work out a tricky and calm customer who shot from the hip but was maddeningly hard to hit. Woolford won the final round on sheer willpower, but El Maachi had already bagged the win.

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